Verses 1-2
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Therefore, since we have been... - Beginning with the Greek particle oun (Therefore) the apostle proceeds to describe the blessed consequences of justification in the life of the believer. The segment breathes an air of joyful confidence. Luther notes: The apostle speaks as one who is extremely happy and full of joy. First, the foundational fact is restated: we have been justified through faith. The passive verb we have been justified is in the aorist tense indicating an action in the past, once for all, that is now complete.

We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ - First and foremost in this list of blessings is peace with God. Here, as is regularly the case in the New Testament, the Greek word eirene (peace) is the equivalent of the Hebrew term shalom. The peace in question is not the mere absence of conflict but the security and serenity of the believer who know full well that his salvation has been fully accomplished in Christ. In is not primarily an inner sense or feeling but the outward situation of being in a relationship of peace with God through Christ, thus the NIV's translation peace with God. Fitzmyer writes:

When human beings enjoy a correct relationship with God, their condition may be one of inner calm and quiet composure, of undisturbed conscience, but the essential thing is the experience of God-given salvation and the hope of glory. Those who are now at peace with God are no longer objects of wrath, for them Christ has removed all wrath. Reconciliation has been provided by God. (p.395)

Christ is the Mediator, the Reconciler, in the Father's plan of salvation. Through His sacrificial death in our place the redemption price has been paid in blood, and the righteous anger of God against sin has been propitiated. God the Creator, and man, the fallen creature are reunited in Christ. St. Augustine said it well when he noted: You made us for Yourself and our hearts find no peace until they rest in You. (Boice, p. 504)

Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace... - We have gained access carries the connotation of being escorted into the royal audience chamber of the king. In this instance, Christ, the divine Son, ushers us into the presence of His Father. We stand before the royal throne and enjoy the favor of the King for Christ's sake. Having been declared Not Guilty! through the undeserved love of God in Christ we now stand in this grace. This is use of the term grace as a sphere or state of being into which one enters is somewhat unusual in the New Testament but is fully consistent with the Pauline concept of God's undeserved love at work in the lives of sinful men. Thus to depart from this status would be to fall from grace (Galatians 5:4).

And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. - The first blessed consequence of justification is peace. Next comes hope. The verb which NIV translates here as rejoice (Greek - kauxometha) literally means to boast. The word suggests confidence, joy, and jubilation. Previously, St. Paul had excluded the boasting who depended on their own identity or merit (cf. 2:17,23; 3:27-31; 4:2). But now boasting is presented in a positive light and commended, for it is not based upon human achievement but divine grace. A Christian need not fear the future because Jesus Christ is our hope (1 Timothy 1:1). We can celebrate because in Christ our destiny is to share in the glory of God. This hope is every bit as gratuitous as faith itself. It does not rest in us or upon anything that we do but relies solely upon God and what He has done for us in Christ. Thus when we celebrate our share in the glory to revealed we are not bragging about ourselves but rather celebrating that which God has done.

Verses 3-5
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.

Not only so.... - This confident boasting in the Lord does not merely focus on the glory that will be revealed in the future. This hope is a blessing and a resource that is applicable to our present circumstances, no matter how difficult or unpleasant they may be. We need not flee in terror or despair from the troubles of this world. The undeserved love of God which is the firm foundation of our hope is much stronger than all the troubles of this life. Sufferings (Greek - thlipsis) is a general term which means hardship, trouble, and affliction of every sort and description. The term comes from a root which means to press down, or to crush. It is often used, as in this case, to refer to the ordinary distress brought on by outward circumstances in everyday life. To the unbeliever, the troubles of life are nothing more than a penalty and a punishment for sin. But for the believer that bane is turned into a blessing. It is possible for us to rejoice in our sufferings because by God's grace they can serve to draw us closer to him. Suffering and affliction become precisely the point at which hope is encountered and proves itself. The function of hope in the Christian life is to motivate and develop conduct, endurance, and character. (Fitzmyer, p. 397)

Because we know that suffering produces perseverance... - The apostle leads us through a careful step by step process which takes us from the present reality of our lives and ultimately arrives at hope fulfilled. Sequences of this kind, in which suffering begins a chain of linked virtues are also found in 1 Peter 1:6-7 and James 1:2-4. Paul's goal is to lead believers to view suffering from a proper perspective rather than trying to avoid or escape it. In the end, the believer who learns to view affliction in this way will find that it strengthens hope rather than threatening or weakening it. Suffering produces perseverance. Hypomone (perseverance) literally means a remaining or living under something, that is persistent patience in time of trial. Trench calls it a noble word that always suggests manliness and bravery. It is the courage and confidence to remain under the load of affliction without faltering or complaint, continuing on no matter how overwhelming the load may become. The pattern of strengthening must begin with a willing to endure the suffering. In the parlance of modern physical conditioning, Paul's basic message is No pain - No Gain.

Perseverance, character; - Character (Greek - dokime) literally means the quality of being approved. The word is uniquely Pauline in the New Testament. In classical Greek it is regularly used to describe the testing process which determined the gold or silver content in a coin. In this context it refers to personal character that has been tested and tried, as metal is tested in the fire and purged of its impurities. Suffering is the fire that burns away the weakness and proves and matures the individual who is able to endure.

And character, hope. - The climax and culmination of this process is hope. Godet is quite correct when he observes that Hope is the hinge upon which the entire paragraph turns. The English noun hope lacks the power of its Greek counterpart elpis. The English word suggests the desire that things will turn out in a certain way while the Greek word expresses the certainty that that which we do not yet possess will one day be ours. We can't see it now, but we are sure that it's coming. (cf. Hebrews 6:9-20)

And hope does not disappoint us... - The result of false hope, believing in that which does not come to pass is shame and disgrace. The prophets of the Old Testament affirm repeatedly that those whose hope is in the Lord need not fear such an outcome (Cf. Psalm 22:6; 25:3,20; 31:1,17; 71:1; Isaiah 28:16; 50:7; 54:4; Joel 2:26-27). Those who hope in the Lord will be vindicated for this is the hope that foes not disappoint us. The focus of this hope is the final vindication, complete salvation, and a favorable verdict in the Last Judgment. Christians need not fear that the judgement will "put them to shame," in the sense that the foundation on which they have built their lives and hope for eternal blessing should prove inadequate. (Moo, p. 304). The final clause in Verse 5 is causal, that is, it explains the basis for the confident hope which has been expressed. The phrase is linked with the Greek particle hoti (because) which indicates the causal connection. Our hope is confident and secure because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us. Every believer has received the love (Greek - agape, undeserved, unconditional, gracious love) personally and individually (poured out...into our hearts) by the work of the Holy Spirit whom He has given us. The picturesque verb poured out (Greek - ekkexutai) is used to refer to an abundant, extravagant effusion. This is not a barely adequate trickle, but an overflowing floodtide of love. The same word is used in Acts 2:17,18 to describe the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Thus our hope for the future does not rest upon us or our love for God. It stands, instead upon the firm rock of the faithful God's love for us and therefore it is certain for time and for eternity. The presence of the Holy Spirit is not only the proof but also the medium of the outpouring of God's love (cf. 8:15-17; Galatians 4:6). In 2 Corinthians 1:22, Paul says that God has put His Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. The word literally means a down payment or first installment payment of the heavenly glory that will one day be revealed. That is exactly the role which St. Paul assigns to the Holy Spirit in this text.

Verses 6-8
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

You see, at just the right time... - In the verses which follow Paul presents the incredible nature of the gracious love of God for fallen mankind. That love was not contingent upon anything in us. It is spontaneous and absolutely gratuitous in nature. God loves us simply because God is love. Indeed, the gleaming brilliance of His amazing grace is presented here against the black background of human sinfulness. At the moment of our greatest need, at the point at which we were totally incapable of helping or saving ourselves, precisely then, at just the right time, God acted on our behalf. In Christ, He did for us that which we could never have done for ourselves. In the sacred person of His only begotten Son, God Himself became natural condition of every human being. First, we were powerless (Greek - asthenes).

The English versions translate the word as helpless, without strength, feeble, sluggish in doing right, etc. Boice is correct in noting: Only the strongest terms will do in this context, since the idea is that, left to ourselves, none of us is able to do even one small thing to please God or achieve salvation. (Boice, p.536) This adjective is commonly used to refer to the debilitation of physical illness (Philippians 2:26-27; Galatians 4:13; 1 Timothy 5:23; 2 Timothy 4:10; 1 Corinthians 11:30). For St. Paul the word is typically used to characterize the complete inability of natural man in matters spiritual (i.e. 1 Corinthians 5:43). This lack of strength persists even in the redeemed life on this earth (2 Corinthians 11:21-13:9). It is altered only by the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit in the believer.

But our spiritual dilemma is infinitely more profound than the mere absence of strength. We are actively opposed to God and His will. Paul characterizes those for whom Christ died as the ungodly (Greek - asebeis - literally without reverence for God) This is a strong pejorative term reminiscent of the rebellion described in chapter one (cf. 1:18). The state of rebellion here described applies without exception to all of humanity. The apostle explicitly includes himself in this blanket condemnation when he says While we were still sinners. Mankind is by nature in a state of fierce opposition to the Creator God.

God is sovereign, but they oppose Him in His sovereignty. They do not want Him to rule over them; they want to be free to do as they please. God is holy and they oppose Him in His holiness. This means that they do not accept His righteousness and proper moral standards; they do not want their sinful acts and desires to be called into question. . God is omniscient and they oppose Him for His omniscience. They are angry that he knows them perfectly, that nothing they think or do is hidden from His sight. They also oppose Him for His immutability, since immutability means that God does not change in these or any of His other attributes. (Boice, p. 537)

In Romans 3:23 Paul had declared, For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. He now reminds us that those from whom Christ died were not good or righteous men but those who have fallen far short of the righteous demands of God's holy law. The incredible love of God can only be fully understood in contrast to the helplessness, godlessness, and sinfulness of man. We do not, and could never have deserved that which God has done for us in Christ.

Christ died for us - The redemption price has been paid in full on the cross. The tense of the verb is aorist indicating the once for all nature of the historic fact of Christ's substitutionary death. Christ died for us - this is the incredible, incomprehensible good news which Paul proclaims. The fact of Christ's death for the sins of mankind is asserted both at the beginning (Christ died for the ungodly. - vs.6) and the end (Christ died for us. - vs. 8) of the sentence for particular emphasis. The result of this emphasis is, once again, to highlight the absolutely gratuitous nature of God's love for humankind. The classic hymn by F.M. Lehman says it well:

The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell.

The guilty pair, bowed down with care, God gave His only Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled and rescued from his deadly sin.

Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade;

To write the love of God above would drain the mighty ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, tho stretched above from sky to sky.

Oh, love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless, how wide and strong!
It shall forevermore endure - proclaimed in saints and angels song.

But God demonstrates His own love for us... - The death of Christ for sinful humanity is the decisive demonstration of God's unconditional love. There is no quid pro quo in the love manifested; divine love is spontaneously demonstrated toward sinners without a hint that it is repaying a love already shown. The death of Christ is for us, sinners, precisely the proof of God's love for us. (Fitzmyer, p. 400) There is a beautiful Trinitarian symmetry in this paragraph. The love of God the Father is shown forth in the death of God the Son and that love is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (vs. 5). All three Persons of the Godhead operating together as one for us and for our salvation.

Verses 9-10
Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him! For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!

Since we have now been justified by His blood... The form of argument in each of these two verses is a reversal of the typical rabbinic teaching device known in Hebrew as qal way'yomer (English - From light to heavy). (cf. Matthew 7:11) In Western tradition the logical sequence is known as a minori ad maius (English - From the lesser to the greater). In both phrases Paul contends that since God has already accomplished the greater or more difficult task ( we have now been justified by His blood - vs. 9; when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son vs. 10), there can be no doubt that He will also accomplish the lesser or easier task (shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him - vs. 9; shall we be saved through His life - vs. 10).

The cause which merits (causa meritoria) our justification is the blood of Christ shed for us upon the cross. Lenski correctly argues that Blood is specifically used to denote a sacrificial death, and Christ died by shedding His blood, he could not have died another kind of death. (Lenski, p. 350) We who have been justified in His blood can confidently await the great day of Christ's return. We need not fear the awesome wrath of God which will be revealed on the Day of Judgement for we have been washed in the blood of the Lamb. In the sacrificial death of Christ our righteousness has already been established Our deliverance from wrath on the Last Day is the result of that which Christ has already accomplished for us. Accordingly, it is possible for us to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead - Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath (1 Thessalonians 1:10).

For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him... - Sinners are not merely ungodly and powerless, but have actually become the enemies of God. James Dunn writes:

The picture is clearly of a sharp hostility between God and humanity; the human condition independent of God is not simply a state of human weakness, disregard for God, and responsiveness to sin; it is also a state of actual rebellion against the creaturely role of complete dependence on the creator. Man needs to be weaned away from that delusion about "standing on his own feet," which is really nothing more mature than a childish tantrum. (Dunn, p. 268)

The concept of reconciliation (Greek - katallassein) is one of Scriptures' most important descriptions of that which God has done for us and for our salvation in Christ. Reconciliation refers to the restoration of friendly relationships and of peace where before there had been alienation and hostility. It implies the removal of the offense which caused the disruption of peace and harmony. In Scripture it refers to God's action in removing the barrier of sin which separated Him from fallen mankind by the substitutionary death of His Son.. The innocent Christ takes the place of the guilty mankind and offers His death as our substitute (Vicarious Atonement). The other two great reconciliation texts of the New Testament are 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 and Ephesians 2:13-16.

All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation...We implore you on Christ's behalf; be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:18-21)

But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. (Ephesians 2:13-16)

The close parallel between the justification language of verse 9 (Since we have now been justified by His blood) and the reconciliation language of verse 10 (We were reconciled in Him through the death of His Son) demonstrates the close similarity between these two verbal images of that which God has done for the salvation of fallen mankind. Reconciliation and Justification are indeed theological equivalents. James Dunn is quite correct when he states: The temptation to press for a clear distinction between "justification" and "reconciliation" should be avoided...Paul regards the one as the equivalent of the other. (Dunn, p.259) In this regard, Professor Kurt Marquart hails what he describes as Luther's grand equations as characteristic of the evangelical emphasis of Lutheran theology.

Grace equals forgiveness equals justification equals redemption equals reconciliation equals propitiation. These are theological not philological equivalents. Of course the words "propitiation," "redemption," and the rest, mean different things - but they refer to the same theological reality, though from different angles or aspects of it. This is not scholarly carelessness on Luther's part, but pastoral meat and potatoes orientation. Impatient with everything frilly and pedantic, Luther concentrates massively on the Gospel essentials -- and with him, the Lutheran Church. (Marquart, p.42)

This act of reconciliation is objective, in the sense that it takes place not within man or as the result of anything man has done, but within the heart of God Himself. The great Lutheran dogmatician Franz Pieper writes:

Scripture teaches the objective reconciliation. Nineteen hundred years ago Christ effected the reconciliation of all men with God. God does not wait for men to reconcile Him with themselves by means of any efforts of their own. He is already reconciled. The reconciliation is an accomplished fact, just like the creation of the world. Romans 5:10: "We were reconciled to God by the death of His Son." When Christ died, God became reconciled. As Christ's death lies in the past, so also our reconciliation is an accomplished fact. 2 Corinthians 5:19: "God was in Christ, reconciling" (namely, when Christ lived and died on earth) "the world unto Himself. The katallassein of Romans 5:10 and 2 Corinthians 5:19 does not refer - let this fact be noted - to any change that occurs in men, but describes an occurrence in the heart of God. It was God who laid His anger by on account of the ransom brought by Christ. It was God who had at that time already in His heart forgiven the sins of the whole world, for the statement: "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself" means - and that is not our, but the apostle's own interpretation - that God did not "impute their trespasses unto them." And "not imputing their trespasses" is, according to Scripture (Romans 4:6-8) synonymous with "forgiving sins," "justifying" the sinner. The resurrection of Christ is, as Holy Writ teaches, the actual absolution of the whole world of sinners. Romans 4:25: "Who was raised again for our justification." At that time we were objectively declared free from sin. (Pieper, II, p.348)

Through the death of His Son. - Justification in Verse 9 is accomplished by His blood (Greek - en), and now reconciliation is accomplished through (Greek - dia) the death of His Son. The atonement price was paid in full on the cross and the innocent death of God's own Son becomes the means through which reconciliation is accomplished. It is God who is at work here, not man. The verb we were reconciled is passive. We are reconciled to God by God. R.C.H. Lenski asserts:

God always loved the world (John 3:16). It was this love which dated from all eternity that caused Him to give His Son into death for the ungodly world. God needed no reconciliation, nothing to change Him - why should He change? The whole trouble was with us, with what we had made ourselves (enemies), with the state into which we had placed ourselves (sin, godlessness)...We were wrong, we alone; a change had to take place in our case, and we could not make it ourselves, God had to make it. It took the sacrificial death of His Son to do it...This is an objective act. It wrought a change with or upon these enemies, not within them. It, as yet, did not turn their enmity into friendship, nor did it make the world the kingdom. It changed the unredeemed into the redeemed world. The instant Christ died the whole world of sinners was changed completely. It was now a world for whose sin atonement had been made and no longer a world with unatoned sins...Even all the damned in hell were thus reconciled to God. Not as men who were never reconciled are they damned but as men who spurned God's reconciliation through Christ. (Lenski, p.352,353)

How much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! - Once again the argument flows from the greater to the lesser (a maiori ad minor). If God in Christ has indeed accomplished the reconciliation of the holy God with sinful mankind, then there can be no doubt that the triumphant Lord who lives and reigns at the right hand of God in heaven will restore His people to the life for which they were created in the beginning. In Verse 9, salvation referred to deliverance from the wrath of God's judgment on the Last Day That is also the point of reference here. Our salvation will be consummated when Christ returns in glory to lead His people into the joy of life eternal. He who was dead is alive and his life is our promise of immortality. He is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep (1 Corinthians 15:20) and because He lives we know that we too shall live.

Verse 11
Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through who we have now received reconciliation.

Not only is this so... - For the third time in the chapter the apostle expresses his confident joy in the Lord - We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God (vs. 2) and we also rejoice in our sufferings (vs. 3). But there is still more! The Christian can exult not only in the hope of glory, and in temporal afflictions that have become in Christ a source of blessing, but also in God Himself who has accomplished this great reconciliation on our behalf. St. John Chysostom writes: And so the fact of His saving us, and saving us too when we were in such a plight, and doing it not merely by His Only-begotten, but by His blood, weaves for us endless crowns to glory in. (Moo, p.314)

Verses 12-15
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned - for before the law was given, sin was in the world. But sin is not taken into account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come.

Therefore, just as sin entered the world... - Lenski marvels at the scope and power of the paragraph which now begins:

Starting with himself and the Romans, Paul sweeps through the world age, from Adam to the last day, from one border of eternity to the other, Christ being in the center. This is theology indeed! With a sure hand fact is placed beside fact, and the one paragraph is enough. Where save in Holy Writ is there a paragraph to compare with this? The detailed discussion on various points must not be allowed to confuse the student, must not dim his vision of the immensity which Paul here causes to tower before him. (Lenski, p. 357)

Dr. Douglas Moo asserts that these verses are among the most theologically significant in the entire Epistle to the Romans. Paul paints with broad brush strokes a "bird's eye" picture of the history of redemption. His canvas is human history, and the scope is universal. (Moo, p.314)

The paragraph begins with the with the linking word Therefore (Greek - dia touto - literally, for this reason). In the preceding verses Paul had demonstrated the gratuitous nature of God's action in the justification and reconciliation of sinners. He now demonstrates why all men were sinners and thus in absolute need of that divine action on their behalf.

Most commentators agree that this sentence is grammatically incomplete. (Grammarians call this an anacoluthon.) Paul introduces a comparison with the words just as (Greek - hosper). However, he then digresses into an extended explanation of the first part of that comparison and never grammatically returns to complete his thought. The expected conclusion finally comes in Verse 14, but without the grammatical structure which would normally introduce it and connect it to that which had come before. The apostle's point is clear nonetheless: Adam and Christ are the pivotal figures upon whom the eternal fate of humanity turns.

Sin entered the world through one man... - Reference to sin in the singular, with the definite article, is typical of the Letter to the Romans. Paul does not view sin, in the first instance as individual actions or misbehavior. Instead it is a basic reality, a malignant, malevolent force which reigns (5:20), can be obeyed (6:16-17), pays wages (6:23), seizes opportunity (7:8,11), deceives and kills (7:11,13). In a word, he personifies sin, picturing it as a power that holds sway in the world outside Christ, bringing disaster and death on all humanity. (Moo, p. 319) Sin was not a part of the world which God created (cf. Genesis 1:31). The perfect world which the Lord God had fashioned for man was destroyed by the willful disobedience of Adam, the first man, the father of the human race. Through Adam's breaking a command (vs.14), trespass (vs. 15), and disobedience (vs. 19), sin entered the world. Sin strides onto the stage of human history as Adam takes and eats the forbidden fruit. The verb entered suggests the intrusion of evil into the goodness of God's creation. The phrase echoes the language of the Apocryphal book The Wisdom of Solomon which sadly notes: Through the devil's envy death entered the world. (2:24). Adam stands alone in his responsibility for mankind's downfall. The phrase through one man is repeated twelve times in this paragraph for unmistakable emphasis. Although Eve sinned first, mankind did not fall until the sin of Adam. Adam was the head. His was the responsibility/authority. When Eve acted, she did so as an individual, for herself alone. When Adam acted he did so on behalf of humanity. In Adam's action, the nature of mankind was changed forever.

Paul's argument is clearly based on the assumption that the text of Genesis Chapter 3 is an accurate account of actual historical events. No other understanding of these verses is possible. Those who would challenge the historicity of the Genesis account must do so in contradiction to Scripture's clear interpretation of itself. Furthermore, the comparison which Paul draws here in Romans 5 reveals the enormous theological implications of the historicity of the Fall account in Genesis 3. A denial of the Fall is not merely an unimportant debate about an obscure and insignificant Old Testament text. Our understanding of the entire plan of salvation is at stake. John MacArthur correctly notes:

The fact that Adam and Eve were not only actual historical figures but were the original human beings from whom all others have descended is absolutely critical to Paul's argument here and is critical to the efficacy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If a historical Adam did not represent all mankind in sinfulness, a historical Christ could not represent all mankind in righteousness. If all men did not fall with the first Adam, all men could not be saved by Christ, the second and last Adam. (MacArthur, p.294)

And death through sin, and in this way death came to all men because all sinned. - At the time of his creation, God had warned Adam, You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. (Genesis 2:16,17). Death is the inevitable result of sin: the inescapable wage which must be paid (Romans 6:23). Man, who was created for immortality, is doomed to death because of his willful disobedience of the Creator God. At the moment of Adam's sin, death became an inescapable part of the human reality. From that time on, Adam's condition, and that of all his descendants, was terminal. Although he was to live for more than 900 years thereafter, death was his companion every day. It was exactly as God had warned Adam it would be: By the sweat of your brow you will earn your food, until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.(Genesis 3:19)

The sixteenth century Reformation artist Hans Sebald Beham graphically depicts this fatal reality in a 1533 woodcut entitled The Fall. The Nuremberg artist, a student of the famous Albrecht Durer, captures the crucial moment as Eve stands before the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Her right hand accepts the apple held in the serpent's gaping jaws while her left hand extends to share another with her husband. Adam passively reaches out to take the forbidden fruit offered by his wife. A leering death's head sprouts from the center of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree's branches become skeletal arms stretching out from the skull to enfold the doomed pair in a fatal embrace. The woodcut presents link between Adam's sin and death's entrance into the world of men with chilling clarity.

In the Greek text the noun death like it counterpart sin has the definite article. Death is thus presented not as an abstract force, but as the personification of a destructive power that would drag all of humanity down into the depths of the grave. The connection between the action of the one man and the fate of all men is unequivocally asserted. The classic Lutheran hymn by Lazarus Spengler says it well:

All mankind fell in Adam's fall, one common sin infects us all;
From sire to son the bane descends, and over all the curse impends.

Thro' all man's powers corruption creeps and him in dreadful bondage keeps;
In guilt he draws his infant breath and reaps its fruit of woe and death.

From hearts depraved, to evil prone, flow thoughts and deeds of sin alone;
God's image lost, the darkened soul nor seeks nor finds its heavenly goal.

The link between Adam's sin and its consequences for his posterity was clearly understood among the people of the Old Testament era as the following quotations from the apocryphal books of 2 Baruch and 4 Ezra indicate:

With the Most High no account is taken of much time and of few years. For what did it profit Adam that he lived 930 years and transgressed that which he was commanded? Therefore, the multitude of time that he lived did not profit him, but it brought death and cut off the years of those who were born from him. (2 Baruch 17:3)

For when Adam sinned, death was decreed against those who were to be born, the multitude of those who would be born was numbered. And for that number a place was prepared where the living ones might live and where the dead might be preserved. (2 Baruch 23:4)

O Adam, what did you do to all who were born after you? And what will be said of the first Eve who obeyed the serpent, so that this whole multitude is going to corruption. And countless are those whom the fire devours. (2 Baruch 48:43)

For although Adam sinned first and has brought death on all who were not in his own time, yet each of them who has been born from him has prepared for himself the coming torment. (2 Baruch 54:15)

O sovereign Lord, did you not speak when you formed the earth - and that without any help - and commanded the dust and it gave you Adam... And you laid upon him one commandment of yours; but he transgressed it, and immediately you appointed death for him and for his descendants...For the first Adam, burdened with an evil heart, transgressed and was overcome, as were also all who were descended from him. Thus the disease became permanent. (4 Ezra, 3:4,7,21)

In the language of theology, the legacy of Adam's disobedience is called original sin. Original Sin is the sinful nature inherited by every naturally born descendant of Adam as the result the first man's transgression. Original sin includes hereditary guilt. The guilt of Adam, the father and head of the human race, would be imputed to all who were to come from him. Lutheran theologian Adolf Hoenecke correctly declares:

The sole reason why all men born since Adam are already at their birth in the state of corruption, into which Adam plunged by the Fall, is this, that God regards the deed of Adam as their deed, charges them with its guilt, and sentences them to be born in the miserable state of hereditary corruption as one deserved by themselves. (Pieper, I, p.539)

Adam's sin is not merely that of a private individual. He is regarded as the common parent, head, root, stock, source and representative of the whole race (Schmid, p. 239). As our source, he stood in our place. Adam was, in that sense, a corporate figure, a personification of the race, both biologically and representatively (cf. Hebrews 7:10). All those who were to come from him, lived in him. When he sinned, we sinned along with him. When he fell, mankind fell too. The guilt of his sin was imputed to all of his progeny. As the modern Lutheran hymnist Martin Franzmann says it: In Adam we have all been one, one huge rebellious man. We all have fled the evening voice that sought us as we ran. The Hebrew text which expresses this concept most explicitly is 4 Ezra 7:118 - O Adam, what have you done? For though it was you who sinned, the fall was not yours alone, but ours also who are your descendants!

But original sin is more than mere guilt. When Adam sinned, what it meant to be human mutated into a grotesque caricature of the perfection of God's original creation. The seed of man was impure from that tragic moment on. The divine image was lost, replaced by a profound hereditary corruption which the Lutheran Confessions describe with these grim words:

A deep, wicked, horrible, fathomless, inscrutable, and unspeakable corruption of the entire nature and all its powers, especially of the highest, principle powers of the soul in the understanding, heart and will so that now, since the Fall, man inherits an inborn wicked disposition and inward impurity of heart, evil lust and propensity; that we all, by disposition and nature inherit from Adam such a heart, feeling, and thought as are, according to their highest powers and light of reason, naturally inclined and disposed directly contrary to God and his chief commandments, yea, that they are enmity against God, especially as regards divine and spiritual things. (Formula of Concord, SD I, 3)

Scripture does not define the specific manner in which this hereditary corruption perpetuates itself and is passed from generation to generation (Latin - propagatio peccati). Martin Chemnitz cautions: How the soul contracts that sin we need not know, since the Holy Spirit has not been pleased to disclose this in certain and clear Scriptural testimonies. However, while refraining from specific definitions, the fathers of the Lutheran Church reject the speculation of those who believe that God creates a new soul at the conception of every human being as contrary to Scripture. John Andrew Quenstedt, one of the great theologians of the age of orthodoxy, carefully summarizes the Lutheran view in this way:

The soul of the first man was immediately created by God; but the soul of Eve was produced by propagation, and the souls of the rest of men are created, not daily, nor begotten of their parents as the body or souls of brutes, but by virtue of the divine blessing (Genesis 1:28), are propagated, "per traducem," (Latin from traductio - through trans-mission or transfer) by their parents ... As human reason, not enlightened by Holy Scripture, knows little that is certain concerning the departure of the human soul from the body, and its condition after its departure, so also it can define nothing certain concerning the origin of the human soul in or with the body. We distinguish between traduction, or the propagation itself of the soul, and the mode of traduction or propagation. That the soul is propagated by parents procreating children, and that souls are not immediately created or infused by God, is sufficiently manifest from the Holy Scriptures; but the mode has not been defined, and therefore, we refrain from its determination and definition. (Schmid, p.166,167)

The fatal result of Adam's transgression spreads to every single human being - death came to all. The particular violations of the law of God which men commit, the individual sins (all sinned) are the result of the sinful nature which we inherit from the first sinner and his original sin. The NIV's translation of the conjunction eph ho as because is inconsistent with Paul's line of thought. The conjunction here is not causative, it is consecutive. It should be translated as with the result that. We sin because we are sinners. Before Adam's sin man was immortal and righteous. After Adam's sin man was mortal and sinful. Death came to all with the sinfulness that Adam brought upon us. All the individual sins which we commit are the result of that deadly sinfulness.

For before the law was given, sin was in the world - The law in this phrase is the written law of Moses. Even without the written law, sin was in the world. The deadly power of sin was immediately in evidence when Cain, Adam's firstborn son murdered his brother Abel. Thus even in the absence of the written law death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses. Once again Paul notes that the basic function of the law is to make us aware of sin (cf. 3:20, 4:15). The final phrase in Verse 13, But sin is not taken into account where there is no law, is a virtual repetition of Romans 4:15. When man sins without the law, his wrongdoing is still sin, but he is not guilty of transgression, that is, a deliberate act of disobedience in defiance of a specific prohibition. When one transgresses a command of law, that law charges this up as a transgression. In other words, law shows the gravity of sin, shows it as transgression, charges it up as such. This is one of its functions. But death reigns through sin just the same whether some code of law or some specific command does this charging up or not. (Lenski, p.365) Adam was guilty of breaking a specific command which he had received directly from God. Once the law had been given at Sinai, mankind was again confronted with specific directives from God which served to reveal and define man's godlessness, unrighteousness and rebellion. The law stood as man's accuser (lex semper accusat). But sin and death still prevailed even over those who did not sin by breaking a command as did Adam. Sin and its consequent death are not dependent upon the law.

Adam who was the pattern of the one to come. - The apostle now resumes the main thrust of his argument and turns from the first Adam, the death-bringer, to the second Adam, the life-giver. The Greek noun is typos which means a type or pattern. The word type denotes those Old Testament persons, institutions, or events that have a divinely intended function of prefiguring realities to be revealed in Christ and His New Testament. Adam, the first man, and Christ, the Second Adam, correspond to one another as men whose actions have had universal impact upon humanity. The effect which the Second Adam had upon mankind is exactly the opposite of the effect which the first Adam had. In fact the Second Adam came for the specific purpose of undoing that which had been done by the first Adam. In the verses which follow, the apostle will explain both the parallel and the difference. Lenski insists that this insightful comparison in foundational for all of Christian theology:

Adam's fatal act typifies Christ's act of deliverance in a certain vital way. The latter had to undo the former, and it is thus that Adam typifies Christ. Paul now presents the entire correspondence. It is so vital because it goes to the bottom of both sin and deliverance from sin. All else that is said in the Scriptures regarding either or both rests on what is here revealed as the absolute bottom. All of our teaching ought to go back to this essential paragraph in Paul's epistle. (Lenski, p. 366)

Paul draws the same crucial comparison in 1 Corinthians 15 as he discusses the victory of life over death in the resurrection of the body and the glorified bodies of the saints in heaven:

So it is written: "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam, a life giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven. (vss.45-49)

Verses 15-17
But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the grace that came by the gift of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many? Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

But the gift is not like the trespass. - The paragraph begins with the adversative conjunction But, because Paul is now defining and qualifying the contrast within the parallel between Adam and Christ. They are alike in that the actions of both are determinative for mankind but they are also different in the nature of their actions and their consequences. These three verses present the two basic contrasts between the work of Adam and that of Christ. That contrast is heightened by the language of the text. That which Christ has done is called the gift (Greek - charisma). The term is based on the Greek word charis which means grace. A charisma is a gift of God's grace, an embodiment of the undeserved love of God, the concrete expression of God's generous and powerful concern for His creation...a medium through which God's graciousness is experienced in Christ. (Dunn, p. 30) Adam's act, on the other hand, is labeled as the trespass (Greek - parabasis). In this context it carries the connotation of transgression, the crossing of a clearly defined line, a deliberate breach of the law.

For if the many died by the trespass of the one man... - Each contrast is presented with the formula For if...how much more. The first part of the contrast describes the describes the consequence of Adam's action. In the preceding phrase Paul used the Greek noun parabasis which means transgression or trespass. In this phrase, however, and slightly different word, paraptoma, is used. The word means false step, slip, or blunder. It is a strong term which brings out the full gravity of Adam's deed. Lenski translates the word as fall and comments: It excludes all excuse, it brings out the full gravity of the act that constitutes the "Fall." So grave was the inexcusable fall of Adam that it killed all men so that the hope of deliverance seemed to be gone forever. (Lenski, p.368) Those impacted by the trespass of the one man are called the many (Greek - hoi polloi). Paul's use of this phrase is rooted in the Old Testament, especially Isaiah 53, where its Hebrew equivalent is used inclusively as a reference to everyone or to all. That is certainly the intended sense here. The consequence of Adam's action was that all men died.

How much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many? - The superlative quality of God's undeserved love is suggested by the double reference to grace in this sentence. That undeserved love comes to us freely through the act of the one man, Jesus Christ. Once again, as in the preceding phrase, the recipients of the one man's action are the many, namely, namely mankind. Lest there be any misunderstanding that Paul merely equates Adam's action with Christ's, the apostle uses a verb that conveys the sense of overabundant surplus (Greek - perisseuein -overflow). The fullness of Paul's language matches the content: on the side of Christ there is an "abounding," an overflowing, an overwhelming and triumphant "much more." (Franzmann, p.100). Stoeckhardt's summary is helpful:

There is, however, a difference in the parallel. The offense effected the many, but "much more" the free gift. If one accurately compares the offense with the free gift, there is on the side of the free gift a plus sign, a plus of evidence and certainty. What Paul contrasts to the offense is the grace of God, the gracious disposition which God shows, and the gift which consists in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, in the grace which Jesus Christ has shown. In the grace of that one Man, Jesus Christ, God's grace manifests itself. And the grace of God is an altogether different power, is much greater, stronger, and effectively more powerful than the transgression of the one man. For that reason it is said of the grace of God and Jesus Christ, not only that it came unto the many, but that it "abounded" unto many, was richly poured out upon them. Therefore, since the boundless grace of God in Christ lies in the balance, all who suffer under the evil effect of Adam's sin can and should be all the more certain that they also share in the free gift of Christ. (Stoeckhardt, p.70)

Again, the gift of God is not like the one man's sin... - The second contrast is now introduced. This time the contrast is between the gift that comes through Christ and the condemnation which was the result of Adam's sin.

The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. - As in the preceding segment the apostle proceeds to elaborate the contrast. Paul uses the forensic language of the law court on both sides of the contrast. The one sin of Adam results in judgment (Greek - krima), the act of a judge in rendering a verdict. That verdict is Guilty! and brings condemnation (Greek - katakrima) upon all of humanity. In Greek the second term is an intensification of the first (krima and katakrima). It denotes not only the pronouncement of the guilty verdict but the consequent execution of the sentence. Thus, in this one word Paul reminds his readers not only of Adam's sin itself but also of the death which came upon mankind as a result of that sin. On the other hand, the gracious gift of God becomes all the more magnificent with the recognition that it does not merely follow one sin but all the sins of mankind, the many trespasses down through the centuries. That one single misdeed should be answered by judgment, this is perfectly understandable; that the accumulated sins and guilt of all the ages should be answered by God's free gift, this is the miracle of miracles, utterly beyond human comprehension. (Cranfield, cited by Moo, p. 338) The result of that which Christ, the Second Adam, has done is justification (Greek - dikaioma). The language is again forensic, courtroom talk. Condemnation means the pronouncement of a guilty verdict by the judge. Justification is its positive counterpart, the pronouncement of Not Guilty!, the judge's declaration of an acquittal.

For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man... - The For if...How much more structure of Verse 15 is here repeated, using many of the same terms from the earlier verse. This verse is the summary and climax of the contrast which has already been presented. Death reigned over all of humanity because of the trespass of the one man. Adam's original sin was the instrument through which death has exercised its fatal dominion throughout all of human history - death reigned through the one man. The use of the aorist tense in the verb reigned is designed to present the whole sweep of Adam's epoch as summed up in the one instant of the death to which all must bow the knee. (Dunn, p. 281)

How much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace... - Now comes the exposition of the other verdict. The apostle's language builds in superfluous repetition in a deliberate effort to reflect the superabundant quality of the grace given and received. God is the active agent here; He alone is the Giver. Those who receive God's abundant provision of grace are believers, the passive recipients of that which God has done for them in Christ. Dr. Stoeckhardt rightly emphasizes both the crucial role of faith and its passive nature:

Along with Luther and the majority of other commentators, we translate "hoi lambanontes" as "those who receive," not as "those who accept." Thus, life is not dependant upon the act of acceptance but upon the gift of righteousness. The individual, therefore, becomes the recipient of this gift for his own person, and receives it as his own. That takes place through faith. Thus the expression "lambanein" is used whenever a person comprehends as a recipient anything that has to do with the concept of faith. However faith does not come about as something done by the individual who takes the gift for himself. Instead, through faith he comes into personal possession of the gift, which he applies to himself. It is only believers who will "de facto" rule in life in the days to come. To be sure, "dikaioma" (justification) is for the many, that is for all men. And as a result of this, heaven is open to all men. Salvation has been prepared for all men. Nonetheless, only he who appropriates the gift of righteousness by faith, and thereby receives it as his own, will actually obtain life. Those who spurn and despise this "diakaioma" (justification) go out empty and deprive themselves of the benefits and fruits of this eternal salvation. However, it is not merely the gift of righteousness which appears here as the object of "lambanein," but "ten periseian tes charistos kai tes doreas tes dikaiosunes." The emphasis lies upon the expanded definition of this object. The grace of God, His gracious disposition was manifested and at work. And it is an abundance of this grace and righteousness which we receive, or which we who are in the faith can now say we have received. Boundless grace and righteousness is our lot. (Stoeckhardt, Roemerbrief, p. 255)

The verdict of condemnation was perfect justice. The trespass of the one man, Adam, resulted in the reign of death over all of his posterity. That which sin deserved, it received, quid pro quo. That which had been earned was decreed, nothing more or less. There is, however, no comparable equivalence in the verdict of justification. Here, instead, is what Lenski describes as unrestrainted abundance. Rather than the minimum legal requirement, the divine response to man's dilemma is God's abundant provision of grace and the gift of righteousness.

Just as death reigned through the trespass of one man, so those who God's undeserved love and the gift of justification by faith will reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. The saved are not merely delivered from death, they are carried over to the triumphant reign of life eternal with God in Christ (cf. 2 Timothy 2:11-13; 4:8; Revelation 20:4; 22:5). The opposite to the cold and crushing rule of death is boundless enjoyment of life everlasting, the regal life of a king. This is the goal of justification and the purpose for all that which Christ has done. He is the one man who as Adam's counterpart, will undo the fatal damage that was done in the first man's fall. The reign of life comes only through (Greek - dia) him, the one Mediator between God and man.

Verses 18-19
Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteouness was justification that brings life for all men. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

Consequently.... - The summation, the final deduction of Paul's argument, now arrives introduced by the conjunction consequently (Greek - ara oun). Examination will show that every element of Verse 18 is already present either implicitly or explicitly in the preceding verses. (Murray, p. 199) The familiar formula is repeated again just as...so also to present the correspondence between Adam and Christ as type and antitype.

The result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, - Dunn describes this phrase as a masterly compression of the different aspects picked out in the preceding verses (Dunn, p.283). The Greek text is elliptical, that is, abbreviated, lacking words which must be supplied by the reader. The text literally reads - through the mediation of one man's fall - for all men a verdict of condemnation. Once more, the direct link between the sin of Adam and the inherent sinfulness of all those who come from Adam is clearly asserted. When Adam sinned, all mankind became sinful and fell under the verdict of condemnation.

So also the result of the one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. - In contrast to the one trespass of Adam which brought condemnation, Christ's one act of righteousness (Greek - dikaioma) results in justification that brings life for all men. The one act of righteousness is the factual basis on the basis of which the divine verdict of righteousness (justification) is rendered. In this instance, the one act of righteousness does not refer to a specific isolated action but to the entirety of our Lord's substitutionary life and death. Stoeckhardt notes:

Christ was obedient unto death and the cross, and He demonstrated His obedience by dying on the cross. But the content of the "dikaioma" of Christ goes still further, including all of the obedience which Christ rendered to God in life, suffering and death, the "obedientia activa et passiva." Christ fulfilled all the righteousness of the law; He fully satisfied the righteousness of God, not only its punishments but also its demands. Christ's entire walk upon this earth, culminating in His death, was a single unified act of righteousness ("recte factum"). (Stoeckhardt, Roemerbrief, p.260)

The trespass of Adam condemned mankind to death. The act of righteousness carried out by Christ restores man to life again. It is, as Paul correctly describes it, justification that brings life for all men. Life is the whole point and purpose of justification. Man was created for life in the beginning. Instead. the disobedience of the first man brought on the reign of death. The purpose of justification is to restore mankind to the eternal life with God for which we were intended. The parallel between the universal significance of these two diametrically different actions could not be more clearly drawn. James Dunn emphasizes the profound theological importance of the Adam Christology presented in this paragraph:

At this point the features of Adam Christology are most sharply drawn, with Christ's work described precisely as the antithesis to Adam's - the deed which accords with God's will set against the trespass which marked humankind's wrong turning, the act defined as obedience precisely because it is the reversal of Adam's disobedience. The inaugurating act of the new epoch is thus presented as a counter to and cancellation of the inaugurating act of the old. Christ's right turn undoing Adam's wrong turn. Paul may well intend to suggest the idea of Christ's role as a retracing that of Adam, a recapitulation or rerunning of the divine program for man in which the first Adam's destructive error was both refused and made good by the last Adam, thus opening the way for the fulfillment of God's purpose for man (Hebrews 2:6-15). (Dunn, p. 297)

For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many... - This is the climax of the extended comparison between Adam and Christ. Verse 19 restates and elaborates the basic point of this segment using the same structure as Verse 18 (just as...so also), but with slightly different wording. Paul reverts to the Hebraism of Verse 15 to designate those who are affected by the actions of Adam and Christ. All men (vs. 18) again become the many (vs.15) As previously noted, the Hebrew phrase is an inclusive reference to everyone (cf. Notes, p.192) which in this case is consistent with the purpose of Verse 19 as a reiteration of Verse 18. At the same time, the clear parallelism of the text in Verse 19 requires that both references to the many within the Verse be understood in the same way. The many who were made sinners through the disobedience of the first Adam and the many who are justified through the obedience of the second Adam are identical. In both instances the reference is to all mankind.

Paul's choice of words is crucial. Adam's action had been previously described as breaking a command (vs. 14), the sin (vs.16), and the trespass (vs.15,17,18). Each of these terms carries its own unique connotation. Now Adam's deed is labeled as the disobedience of the one man. (Greek - parakones tou enos anthropou). The word emphasizes the voluntary nature of Adam's act and naturally recalls the Genesis account of God's instruction to Adam (2:16-17) and the man's deliberate disregard for God's word (3:1-6). Adam chose to disobey. He was not co-erced or deceived (cf. 1 Timothy 2:14). The result of the disobedience of the one man is that the many were made sinners. The verb were made (Greek - katesthatesan) means were constituted, or were caused to be. It refers to the judicial act by which one is placed in a state or condition. Fitzmyer correctly comments: Adam's disobedience placed the mass of humanity in a condition of sin and estrangement from God; the text does not imply that they became sinners merely by imitating Adam's transgression; rather, they were constituted sinners by him and his act of disobedience. (Fitzmyer, p.421)

So also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.... - The disobedience of Adam and its grim consequences for his posterity are overwhelmed and undone by the action of Christ, the second Adam. His willing obedience is the exact opposite of its counterpart in the text. As in the preceding phrase, the terminology emphasizes the issue of volition. Adam chose to disobey. Christ chose to obey. The importance of Christ's voluntary submission to the Father's will is presented in Philippians 2:5-11 where the essence our Lord's action on behalf of fallen humanity is captured in these powerful words: He humbled Himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross. (vs. 8).

The influence of Christ is overwhelming and knows no bounds. Jesus' obedience to the will of His Father has had an effect on the destiny of all human beings. The result of the obedience of the one man is that the many will be made righteous. The use of the future tense here (will be made righteous) is an expression of the logical sequence of events which Paul describes. The justification of the many is the logical result of, that which follows from and thus happens after the obedience of the one man. Hence the use of the future verb tense in this phrase. All of humanity, the many, are justified by that which Christ has done for humankind. Jesus is truly the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). In the historic language of Lutheran theology the conviction that Christ won forgiveness, reconciliation and justification for every human being upon the cross is called objective, general, or universal justification. Writing in Lehre und Wehre in 1888, Dr. George Stoeckhardt clearly defined this crucial concept and its theological implications:

Genuine Lutheran theology counts the doctrine of general justification among the statements and treasures of its faith. Lutherans teach and confess that through Christ's death the entire world of sinners was justified and that through Christ's resurrection, the justification of the sinful world was festively proclaimed. This doctrine of general justification is the guarantee and warranty that the central article of justification by faith is being kept pure. Whoever holds firmly that God was reconciled to the world in Christ, and that to sinners in general their sin was forgiven, to him the justification which comes from faith remains a pure act of the grace of God. Whoever denies general justification is justly under suspicion that he is mixing his own work and merit into the grace of God...We must be well on our guard that we do not lose what we possess. The article of justification remains pure, firm, and unshaken if we keep in mind the statement of doctrine and faith concerning general justification, if we hold firmly that the entire world of sinners has already been justified, through Christ, through that which Christ did and suffered.

Dr. Stoeckhardt contended that without a recognition of objective justification a subtle but decisive shift occurs in the our understanding of the significance of faith. Our faith inevitably becomes the basis for our justification. We receive forgiveness because we believe. According to this view, we believe in that which Christ has done and our sins are forgiven as a result of our faith. The central focus shifts from Christ and what He has done to me and what I do by believing. Thus the certainty of salvation is destroyed. Stoeckhardt concludes:

Thus faith is no longer only a means, only a hand which receives the gift of God. Instead an action of man, this very accepting and grasping of the merit of Christ, becomes that which effects something, which brings into being something that was not there before, namely the forgiveness of sins. Faith is then, basically, a successful performance. In accordance with the Biblical concept of merit, it is a meritorious work. And precisely thereby the comfort of this justification is built upon sand. When a sinful man wants to become certain of this - that God counts him as righteous, that He forgives him his sins, then it does not help him if he looks to Christ and to the gospel. For in Christ, that is in the Gospel of Christ, he finds only the possibility of the forgiveness of sins or justification. Man must then look into his own heart to see whether he finds that behavior which transforms possibility into reality. And if he is in anguish, tortured by his sins and experiencing the wrath of God, faith will flee from his feeling and awareness. At that moment he will not find the crucial faith which he is seeking within his own inner consciousness. Then woe, for the lifeline slips away and is torn from his hands. Then he despairs and goes down to destruction in spite of all the possibilities of salvation.

The reality that the forgiveness of sins, the justification of the world is an accomplished fact is objective in the sense that it is not dependant upon anything within man. God has done it all in the person of His Son. Stoeckhardt cites Romans 5:18-19 as the central proof text for this fundamental teaching of Holy Scripture.

This is a clear, certain doctrine of Holy Scripture. The locus classicus for this doctrine is the second half of the fifth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans. What St. Paul has taught from Romans 1:16 on concerning justification, he sums up in chapter 5, verses 12-21, as in a recapitulation. And the sum of this section is again given in the two verses, 18 and 19...Two men, Adam and Christ, are here held in juxtaposition. Of the one man Adam, it is said - we translate literally: "Through the transgression of one man damnation has come about for all men." Adam has sinned, has transgressed the divine commandment, has been disobedient. And thereby, by this act, the many who descend from Adam have all been set forth as sinners, transgressors before God. The transgression, the disobedience of the one has already been accounted to the many, to all people. All men are now accounted before God as transgressors, as disobedient. They have all sinned, in and with Adam (Verse 12). And in consequence of the disobedience of the one, which is now the disobedience of all, the many - that is all men - are subject to damnation and death. Christ is the counterpart of Adam...As certainly as the first thing is the case, that the many through the deed of the one man (Adam) have been set forth as sinners - it is equally certain that the other thing takes place, that through the deed of the one man (Christ) the many are set forth as righteous...The apostle is explaining what in the case of the one, in the act of the one, has happened to the many. Thus Christ, the one man, has fulfilled all righteousness, has rendered obedience. His entire life, suffering, and death was the fulfillment of righteousness, was one great act of obedience. And precisely through this act the many, those who through Adam's sin had become condemned sinners, have all been presented as righteous before God. The righteousness, the obedience of the one has been accounted to the many, to all people. All men are now accounted before God as righteous, obedient. They all have a share in justification...The Scripture text before us is a clear passage, as clear as sunlight. Paul testifies clearly and plainly here that all men who were condemned through Adam's sin have been justified through Christ and that precisely because Christ fulfilled all righteousness and rendered obedience all men are actually justified, not only potentially.

The great Lutheran theologian argues that objective justification in no way militates against or denies the central article of the Christian religion, namely justification by faith. But faith, he insists, must be understood Biblically so that it retains it special concept and character according to which all merit and work of man is excluded. Dr. Stoeckhardt summarizes the role of faith in this way:

Faith receives, accepts. Faith appears throughout as a means, by which we accept and make our own everything which belongs to justification - the fullness of grace, the obedience of Christ, and the justification itself. Faith does not come into consideration from any angle as a work of man, by which something is brought into existence which was not there before. It is not our faith and accepting which determines the judgement of God, which turns the judgement unto damnation into the opposite, which first creates the relation in which God now stands to sinners. No, it is God's abundant grace alone and the obedience of Christ, of this one man, which directs and moves God to declares us free of sin and damnation - indeed, has long ago directed God to justify sinners and the entire sinful world. This judgement of God has been established long ago. This new relation of God to sinners has been brought about through the obedience of Christ. God's grace, Christ's obedience, the gift of righteousness is prepared before our faith and acceptance, and is offered and presented for acceptance and is offered and presented for acceptance, as St. Paul teaches, in the Word, in the Gospel, to all men who perceive the Gospel. And through faith, when we believe the Gospel, we now appropriate the reconciliation, the justification, the righteousness, which have been promised to all sinners, for our person. Through our faith then, we, for our person, step within this justifying judgement of God, which God has already declared over all sinners in general, into this new relation of grace, founded through Christ, and are thus accounted righteous before God and can declare with joy: Now we have become righteous through faith. Thus through faith the general justification becomes a special justification. We draw and guide the justifying judgement of God upon our head, upon our person. Those who do not believe, reject Christ and the Gospel, though they also have been justified through Christ's obedience. They place themselves outside of that relation of God to sinners which has been established and have validity only in Christ and which is declared to sinful men only in the Gospel. He who believes does not make reality of something that God has only made possible, but recognizes and confirms what, on the side on of God, was long truth and reality. He who does not believe renders impotent and invalid what was already reality.

As is so often the case in Christian theology, this is a matter in which we must rely upon the clear teaching of the Word of God rather than rather than our own reason. Every human being is already justified before God in the shed blood of Jesus Christ. And yet, those who do not believe and thus spurn this forgiveness are condemned. Their sins have been forgiven but they have refused to receive this forgiveness and are thus lost and damned. Despite the fact that their sins have been forgiven it is proper and necessary to regard them as lost and condemned creatures. Accordingly we rejoice when a man is converted and comes to faith by the power of the Holy Spirit. Once I was lost, not in God's grace, but now I am found. Once I was not forgiven, under the wrath and judgement of God, but now I have been forgiven by God's undeserved love in Christ. The apparent logical contradiction between these truths must remain unresolved for both are clearly taught in Scripture. It is an essential part of the dialectic between Law and Gospel.

Just as it is necessary and Scriptural, according to the Gospel, to speak of God as having declared the whole world to be justified for Christ's sake and by raising Him from the dead, it is also necessary and Scriptural, according to the terms of God's Law, to speak of impenitent sinners as not justified and forgiven, but condemned. (CTCR, Theses on Justification, p.17)

We would do well to heed Dr. Stoeckhardt's wise counsel: This matter we cannot solve according to reason. We refrain therefore from systematizing justification. What Scripture says concerning justification, that we accept, that we hold fast and allow not one word of it to be apocapated or distorted. (Stoeckhardt, General Justification, 1888)

Verses 20-21
The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that just a sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The law was added so that the trespass might increase. - This segment concludes with an additional observation about the role of the Mosaic Law. In legalistic Judaism the Law played an all important, even salvific role. The meticulous observance of the Law had come to be the essence of Judaism and the basis for the chosen people's relationship with God. The essentially negative function of law is a consistent emphasis in Paul's theology (cf. 3:20; 4:15; 5:14; 7:7-13; Galatians 3:19). Law is not the crucial issue. Heinrich Bornkamm paraphrases Paul's thought in this way: The law has therefore no epoch making significance, but only has the function of actualizing and radicalizing the crisis of Adamic human existence. (Moo, p. 348) This perspective is emphasized by the verb used in this phrase - the law was added (Greek - pareiserxomai). The term carries a definite negative connotation. Its only other use in the New Testament comes in Galatians 2:4 where it describes Judaizers who have sneaked in to deprive Gentile Christians of their freedom. The NIV's translation (was added) fails to reflect this negative emphasis. In Verse 12 we were told that sin and death have entered the world. Now law is placed in the same category, lumped together with them. Like them, the Law came in from "off stage" to reinforce the power of sin and death over Adam's race. (Dunn, p.299)

Those who focus upon the Law or who emphasize the Law as an equal partner to the Gospel create a theology that is fundamentally distorted. The pronouncement of the Law is God's opus alienum, His alien work. It does not express the essence of His divine nature. That is revealed only in the Gospel, God's opus proprium, His proper work. God in Christ is the Savior of sinners, not a Lawgiver or Teacher of morals. Herman Sasse cogently argues that this insistence upon the primacy of the Gospel and of the subordination of the Law to the Gospel is:

the basic theological idea which dominates the whole teaching of the Lutheran Church and which distinguishes it from the Reformed. It is the basic idea of the Lutheran Reformation that the whole Bible is to be understood from the standpoint of the Gospel, and that the Gospel is the message of the sinners justification by faith alone. (Sasse, p.142)

So that the trespass might increase. - The noun trespass (Greek - paraptoma) alludes to Adam's fall in Eden (cf. Verse 15). The effect of that original sin has not been decreased by the law but rather intensified. It is now given a new dimension as rebellion against the revealed, detailed will of God. Because law was added, sin escalates into transgression (cf. 4:15; 5:14). We may say that the law has the function of turning those it addresses into "their own Adam:" as a sinner who transgresses known law. (Moo, p.348) Were it not for sin, law would never have been necessary. The law only serves to increase what is already there, namely sin and death.

But where sin increased, grace increased all the more. - The power of sin and death are great indeed. The damning accusations of the Law radicalize the power of sin and condemn all of humanity. But the love of God is infinitely more powerful. The rescuing power not only equals the damning power but towers above it and overwhelms it. The Greek text uses the superlative form to emphasize the total triumph of God's undeserved love. Sin increased but grace super-increased. Julia H. Johnston's classic hymn, based upon this verse, captures the sense of the text.

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord, Grace that exceeds our sins and our guilt,
Yonder on Calvary's mount outpoured, There where the blood of the Lamb was spilt.
(Refrain)

Grace, grace, God's grace; Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God's grace, Grace that is greater than all our sin.
(Refrain)

Sin and despair like the sea waves cold, Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold, Points to the refuge, the Mighty Cross.
(Refrain)

Dark is the stain that we cannot hide, What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide; Whiter than snow you may be today.
(Refrain)

Marvelous, inifinite, matchless grace, Freely bestowed on all who believe;
You that are longing to see His face, Will you this momemt His grace believe?
(Refrain)

So that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign... - The argument now surges to its triumphant crescendo. The just as - so also structure which has prevailed throughout this segment appears for the last time, restating and concluding basic themes. In Verse 17 we had been told By the trespass of the one man death reigned through that one man. Paul returns to that theme here and reminds us that the dominion of death over humanity is the result of sin. The posterity of Adam dwells within the realm of death because of the first man's fall into sin. All of mankind now lives and dies in bondage to sin. But through the second Adam, Jesus Christ, our Lord, the reign of sin and death has been broken. In Christ, a new era has come where grace not sin prevails and reigns. In Christ we have received God's declaration of righteousness (cf. 1:17; 3:21,22) the result of which is eternal life. James Dunn writes:

The first act of the human drama ends in darkest tragedy - sin reigning with death the final word. The Gospel of Christ for Paul is that that power has been broken; God's grace has more than matched the intensification of sin through the law and so given sure promise of life beyond the cold grasp of death...As sin and death encompass the whole of the old epoch, so grace encompasses the whole of the new...And always through Christ Jesus as Lord; if the agency of Adam's trespass gave free reign to sin and death, it is precisely the force which continues to come through the one man who defeated sin and death, which sustains the believers against their continuing claims upon him and which will prove finally triumphant. The one man who lost his way condemned those like him to fall short of the destiny intended for man; the one man who refused the wrong turning and completed man's intended destiny thereby made it possible for those who come after him to fulfill that destiny too through the grace which was and is preeminently His. (Dunn, p.300

As we come to this incredible chapter we cannot but marvel with R.C.H. Lenski, Who but an inspired writer could put such a volume of saving truth into twenty-one short verses? (Lenski, p.386)

(continue)